Why the Attitude Era wouldn't work now (No matter how much you think it will)

WWE(F) has had millions of fans and these fans have seen the many different eras the E' has gone through, depending on the age of the fan of course. Between the WWWF in the 60s and 70s, to just the WWF of the 80s, mostly molded by characters and gimmicks than wrestling, to the Attitude Era of the 90s, Ruthless Agression for the early and mid 2000s, to where we are now with the PG era. But no era is more acclaimed and talked about than the Attitude Era.

The Attitude Era, largely contained of angles of mature nature, is what has everyone buzzing, even 10-15 years past it. The WWE is still making money off of it due to the release of WWE 13 and their recent Attitude Era DVD. But it's not just the games and films that give hope to the fans that the WWE will revert back to these days, it's also the misplaced sense of knowledge that leads them to believe the Attitude Era is what would work now, instead of the PG era that the E' seems to be "stuck" in.

In truth, i'm here to tell you, without a shadow of a doubt, that the Attitude Era would not work in this day and age. I know, we're only just 10 years removed from the end of the Attitude Era, you can practically still see it in your rear view mirror. But it won't happen now because it won't work.

That era of wrestling really spawned from a couple of major events, events that to this day really haven't been seen again. The rise of the WCW and the Montreal Screwjob. See, Eric Bischoff and Ted Turner has been preparing for war with the WWF, taking its former stars and trashing the federation at every turn. Once WCW got its Monday Night show, things really got started, forcing WWF to try and step up its game. Part of stepping up their game was building new stars to lead the way. Guys like Stone Cold, The Rock, HHH, HBK, Taker, they had all been around, but if the WWF were going to prevail over WCW, they needed to push these guys to the top. They also needed to keep their stars, which is where the screwjob comes in. We all know the story, Hart decides to go to WCW, Vince screws him in his hometown royally, and thus Vince becomes this tremendous heel character after a real life betrayal (from both sides). Of course, we also know the rest of the story about the Attitude Era. The back and forth in the ratings lead, the racy angles both productions would put on, and the somewhat decent wrestling we would see along the way.

Sorry for the history lesson, but I had to put all that out there for one reason. The paragraph above is all the argument needed to shut down any thought of the Attitude Era.

Firstly, there are SO many credible companies out right now, and so many different audiences, there can't be an opposition to the E'. Everyone is quick to say TNA is 2nd best brand of wrestling out there, but are they really? Is it clear cut? They can't even match the kind of ratings that WWE' worst show puts on, and legitimately if you can't get ratings, you can't start the war, let alone win it.

Secondly, the WWE doesn't have the personnel to put on another era like that. Sure, they've got some characters that already stretch the PG rating, but to put on the angles that an Attitude Era would require, they don't have all the pieces needed.

Thirdly, no one really wants to go to TNA or any indy promotion once they've gotten to the WWE. Guys like Christian, Kurt Angle and Jeff Hardy should have paved the way for more to jump ship, the way Hogan, Macho Man and etc. did. Besides, truthfully, WWE didn't care about Christian or Hardy jumping ship, not nearly the way they cared back in the mid 90s.

Lastly, I don't think any wrestling companies has ever repeated an era, especially not the WWE. They always go in a different each time they think the product is getting stale, it's time to go forward, not backward.

People will never let it go. The funny thing is most of those who keep harping on are actually too young to have seen it. It's mostly what they've read on sites like this or videos they've seen on Youtube.

Most things seem better in hindsight.

For me, being old enough to remember Wrestlemania I, the 80's were the finest wrestling period but I'm sure those old enough to remember would extoll the virtues of 60's and 70's wrestling as being far superior.

I don't think it's so much the Attitude Era, as it is, the Monday Night Wars. With WWE being the only game in town, interest in wrestling has gone away. the Attitude Era helped WWE beat WCW because it was new and edgy. That's what everyone wanted. But to have an Attitude Era now makes no sense. *And I'm a huge Attitude Era guy*. With no one putting pressure on you, why risk losing your audience, your sponsors, etc. The Attitude Era would work again, but it would have to be someone else doing it.

While I agree with the general premise thatt eh Attitude Era cannot be duplicated, I do believe that the WWE CAN and SHOULD get back to edgier storylines, allow for a little more risque angle's involving some of the Diva's, let the inuendo fly, let guys juice on TV. With Linda McMahon no longer involved in politics, there's no reason to be so toned down in your on air programming. There's no reason that the WWE should be placating to the child demographic. Monday Night wars was fun. Until another billionaire buys TNA and can invest in the product, we will never experience that, but ECW wasn't directly part of that war and they were the edgiest promotion running at the time. Attitude is used way to often, allow guys a bit more freedom to get a little dark with their charachters. I want less refinement from guys and gals.

-Not having enough money for one of your bigger stars is still not acceptable, so you can't fully blame Bret for jumping.

-Edgier storylines could work, but I still don't think they have the personnel for it. They've got Punk......but that's really it. I don't think Orton, Cena, Ryback, Ziggler, Sheamus, Show, Rhodes, Cesaro and etc. could fit into edgier storylines and it being believable.